medical groups
California MD groups get $65M in P4P bonuses
It looks like some California medical groups and IPAs are profiting from their participation in pay-for-performance programs--but not that much. According to the Integrated Healthcare Association,... Read more...
Trend: Lack of surgeons squeezes hospitals
In previous decades, medical schools put a cap on student enrollment, believing that controls imposed by managed care plans would reduce demand for physicians. Instead, what's happened is that such... Read more...
Report:Number of U.S. primary care MDs falls
A new study underscores the point that the number of U.S. doctors specializing in primary care is falling, though stats suggest that the gap is being covered by doctors who move here from other... Read more...
Blue Cross asks MDs for info to cancel policies
Blue Cross of California has raised eyebrows around the state, and sparked protests from some physician groups, by sending medical groups applications filled out by beneficiaries and asking the... Read more...
GA docs sue Blue plan over law
A contract fight between a group of Georgia physicians and BlueCross BlueShield of Georgia has erupted into a much-larger dispute over state rules on who plans must admit to their physician networks.... Read more...
Trend: Arbitration becoming more common
Increasingly often, physicians and hospitals are asking patients to sign contracts under which they agree to go through binding arbitration, rather than the courts, if they have a dispute to settle.... Read more...
BCBS of TN plans to share doctor ratings, prices
BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, the state's largest health insurer, said this week that it plans to begin offering doctor quality ratings and cost data to consumers in April. The Blue plan will... Read more...
AMA fights to keep malpractice caps in place
The AMA has released an analysis of independent research which concludes that caps on non-economic damages in med mal cases lower insurance premiums by an average of 17 percent. It also argues that... Read more...
ALSO NOTED: HHS budgets $150M to promote EMR use by small med groups; Glaxo wins Paxil suicide case; and much more...
> HHS is moving ahead with its $150 million incentive plan designed to promote the use of electronic medical records in smaller medical groups. Read more...
CO considers raising medical malpractice caps
A new Colorado measure would raise the state's existing medical malpractice caps, stirring opposition from groups who say that such a measure would increase medical costs and in some cases drive... Read more...
